


A Sisterly Affair

by Yukitsune



Category: Love Live! School Idol Festival (Video Game), Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: Established Relationship, F/F, sleepover
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-16
Updated: 2018-05-16
Packaged: 2019-05-08 00:44:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,007
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14682945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yukitsune/pseuds/Yukitsune
Summary: This is the sleepover that nobody asked for, after I got inspired by the Mari and Ruby event cards.OrMari learns that Ruby loves Dia, Ruby learns that Mari loves Dia, and Dia learns that she should never cancel dates with her girlfriend.





	A Sisterly Affair

“You kidnapped her.” 

“Good afternoon to you too Dia!” Hearing her sister’s name, the younger Kurosawa looked up with curiosity. She had just messaged Dia that she had arrived safely at the Ohara Hotel. Mari had brought her to her room and gone to get the extra pillows and blankets. 

“What are you going to do to her?” 

“Little Ruby-chan came willingly, just so you know. There was very little convincing involved on my part.” 

“You kidnapped my sister.” 

“We’re having tea now and then we’re going to take a bath before dinner. Your sister wanted strawberry tea so I added some fresh strawberries to the fruit tea she brought over.” 

“SO THAT’S WHERE THE TEA WENT!” Mari raised the phone slightly away from ear as Dia’s shrill voice carried through the receiver. She looked over and saw Ruby cringe at her older sister’s voice. Maybe she should have lowered the volume or left the room. “Actually, we just bought that two days ago. Wait, was this slumber party planned in advance?” 

“Uhh...no?” 

“Mari-san, I’m your girlfriend! How could you do this?” 

“Says the girlfriend who isn’t here right now~” Although Mari maintained her usual melodic tone, on her end of the line, Ruby could tell that she was quite hurt that Dia had cancelled on her. 

“You did all this because I didn't cancel my student council meetings today?” 

“I cancelled my own meeting because you promised to have a slumber party with me. So, of course I’d feel lonely after you stood me up.” 

“And then you stole my sister!!” 

“Don’t be so dramatic. You can come over to collect her tomorrow, but the ransom price is going to be pretty high because she’s such a sweetheart.” Dia could hear Ruby’s giggles in the background and relaxed a bit, knowing that she wasn’t being locked in the basement and tortured. She was still furious with her girlfriend though. 

“Wait, what ransom?” 

“You seem to be adamant that I kidnapped her. I’m just giving you what you want.” 

Dia was livid. She glanced up at the clock in the Student Council room with a sigh. Her meeting with the other club executives would begin in 5 minutes. “Fine, what do you want in return for my sister?” 

“You, of course.” Mari continued as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “The whole weekend. No heading back to school or bringing documents for us to go through.” 

“Uwaaa Mari-chan that’s so romantic!!” Ruby squealed, even though her mouth was full of sweets. Mari flashed a smirk at her while Dia fumed back on the mainland. 3 minutes to go. 

“..........I’ll see you tomorrow after breakfast.” The situation was worse than she had imagined. Her precious sister had been brainwashed and converted. She had no choice but to give in. It was one night, and Mari wasn’t the worst person in the world. “I leave Ruby in your care tonight. Don’t let her stay up too late, make sure she brushes her teeth and doesn’t sleep next to her pho-”

She heard the dial tone and ended the call with a huff. She took it back; her girlfriend was the worst. Why was she dating Mari again? 

~~~

“Mari-chan, your room is so pretty! It looks like a princess’ chambers!” 

“Aww I’m glad you like it! Since you’re staying over, you can be a princess too!” Mari brought out the extra blankets and pillows and placed them on one of the empty sofas while Ruby continued nibbling on the strawberry jam cookies. She had never tasted cookies like this, which made sense after Mari told her that they were from England. “Please make yourself at home. Don’t worry about your sister, Dia worries enough for all three of us put together.” 

“Hehe, that’s true. I hope she doesn’t get too upset with you.” Ruby noticed that Mari had changed out of her uniform to a casual sleeveless dress. Mari’s casual clothes still made her look sophisticated, which reminded Ruby of her sister. 

“That’s kind of you. Don’t worry, I’m sure Dia would already be here strangling me if she thought I was serious. She’s too busy conducting meetings in my place that both of us were supposed to cancel.” The blonde girl pouted as she sat down next to her. Ruby poured the tea for her almost instinctively. She had been taught the art of pouring and appreciating tea at a young age because Dia had wanted to make sure Ruby could make tea for her father when he got home from work. 

“Onee-chan takes her duties very seriously. Sometimes to the point that she overexerts herself.”

“You’re absolutely right. Kanan and I once brought Dia for a cruise over the weekend to get away from the work, but she downloaded all her files into her ipad!” 

“That...sounds like something Onee-chan would do.” Ruby grinned as she alternated between sipping her tea and trying out the different snacks Mari brought. “It doesn’t mean that she doesn’t care though. She just prefers to finish her work so that she doesn't have to think about it later.”

“You’re right, it’s just frustrating sometimes. Enough about her for now, how is the tea?” 

“Ah! I love the fresh strawberries in it! Thank you for taking the trouble to get them for me.”

“Nonsense! You brought the incredible tea, and in such pretty packaging too. I’m happy to have something to contribute to the tea party.” 

Conversation with the older girl was a lot easier than she imagined. Ruby was relieved that she felt comfortable with Mari even though they rarely spent time together. She usually practiced with Hanamaru and Yoshiko or her sub-unit. So, she rarely had much conversation with the other two seniors unless it was outside of school. Even before Mari had gone overseas, Kanan, Mari and Dia were inseparable and Ruby felt a bit too intimidated to approach them as Dia’s younger sister. 

It seemed like barely any time had passed before Mari announced that it was time for dinner. They passed the normal buffet line where all the hotel guests were, and headed into a private dining hall. Ruby wanted to squeal at the amount of desserts that Mari had gotten the cooks to prepare. For the moment, she was very grateful that her sister had cancelled her date with Mari. 

~~~

Mari took a shower while Ruby flipped through her idol magazines. Mari had all the special editions and favourite issues in her collection and she was happy to see familiar favourites in the columns. It brought back precious memories of when Dia and her had dressed up like Eli and Hanayo and learned their songs and choreography. Back then, their idol dreams only belonged to the two of them. Although they had to share that dream with seven other people, their dream was quickly becoming a reality. 

As much as her friends felt that Dia was overbearing and overprotective, she also knew that Dia had been looking after her since she was born. From the moment she was born, she had a sister whom she would share her life with. Being and having a sibling were not the same things, and she was grateful to have Dia as an older sister she could look up to. Although most of her childhood was rather sheltered, as she would admit, she was slowly taking her own steps into the world. 

As the youngest daughter, Ruby hardly got scolded by her parents. Once, she had been playing with a ball inside the house, even though Dia had told her to go outside and play. Her ball had knocked over a water jug on the table, and the crash frightened her. Dia had come in and admonished her for not listening to her and making a mess. She had sighed and sent her to her room, which Ruby immediately obeyed. She only came down when her mother called her down for dinner. She was expecting another scolding from her mother when she discovered that her jug was broken, but nothing of the sort happened. Instead, she found her sister in the hallway balancing books on her head while sitting in Seiza style. Ruby wanted to apologize for earlier, but she was afraid to disturb her. Sitting in the lounge with her father, she wondered why her sister was doing such things during dinner time, but the thought left her mind once her favourite television show came on. It was only when hours later, when she was getting ready for bed, that she saw her sister eating the leftovers quietly in the kitchen. The realisation dawned on her. 

She stopped playing with balls inside the house.

When she was younger, Ruby sometimes had trouble falling asleep. She had a slight fear of the dark but she didn't want to tell anyone. However, when she woke up, all she had to do was turn and she would be comforted by the warm glow of Dia’s reading light. She didn't know whether her sister left it on by accident, or whether she just knew, but it was one of the little things that made her miss her older sister’s company. Her mother once told her that she had been a fussy baby who often woke her up in the middle of the night, which she had no memory of. The earliest memories that her mind could piece together were of waking up and finding a dark silhouette sitting next to her bed. At first, she had been terrified because it was so dark and she couldn’t tell who it was. She trembled and started to cry. Then, the shadow moved closer and started gently stroking her head. The movements immediately felt familiar and she felt herself calm down. 

“Onee-chan is here, don’t cry. Go back to sleep Ruby....good girl...”

Sometimes she would wake up and find Dia sleeping next to her bed. Her big sister always slept on the floor without her futon, even though she liked to lecture her about catching a cold. She had found it a bit strange at the time, but now that she was older, she realised she had been loved since before she even knew what love was. Hence, the realisation that she was sleeping somewhere without Dia suddenly hit her. 

Her sister wasn’t there to tuck her in or whisper “goodnight” from her bed. They were small things and part of her routine, but she never realised how much more secure she felt when Dia was around. Knowing that she was a few feet away always helped her remember that the darkness wasn’t as scary as she imagined. Nothing was scary when she had an older sister who was there to protect her from any harm. 

She heard a click and she was plunged into darkness. 

“Piggi-!” 

“Ruby-chan? Are you okay? What happened?” Suddenly, the room was flooded with light again and revealed Mari standing next to the light switch. Mari tried to be serious but she couldn’t help but laugh. The young girl was frozen with her back completely straight. She looked like a board. 

“Y-yes... Sorry Mari-chan. I was surprised.”

“It’s okay. What’s the matter? Do you miss Dia? We can call her and you can say goodnight if it helps.” She had always dismissed Dia’s worries as part of her being an overprotective older sister, but perhaps there were some merits to it. She instantly felt guilty after realising that the younger girl was afraid of the dark. 

“No, I don’t want her to worry more. I’m just not used to sleeping without her.” 

“Well, we don’t have to go to sleep right away. Why don’t we stay up and talk for a bit? Dia doesn’t have to know you stayed up late.” 

“Okay. Onee-chan worries that I’m not getting enough sleep. According to her, I used to wake up often in the middle of the night, but I don’t remember any of it.” Ruby hugged one of the fluffy pillows to her chest. “Yet, she often stays up late to study and falls asleep at her desk. So I keep a spare blanket that I cover her with.” 

“You really love your sister a lot, don’t you?” 

“Onee-chan’s watched over me since before I could stand, so now that I can walk, I want to look after her too.” She couldn’t imagine a day where she wouldn’t need her sister anymore. She knew the day of her graduation was approaching and it made her nervous. Dia hadn’t talked much about her future, but she had her sights set on Tokyo University which was hours away. She would barely see her sister except for during the holidays. It was surreal to think that her shared room with Dia would become her room. It made her want to work even harder to appreciate the next few months before the Love Live competition. 

“That was really poetic, and it sounds like something Dia would say.” 

“Do you miss onee-chan a lot? Mari-chan has mentioned Dia quite often today.”

“I do see her in school and during practice, but yes, I still miss spending time with her. Wait, let me show you something.” Mari got up to open a photo album album and scanned through the pages. There were quite a few pictures of Aqours but she skipped the group photos and flipped further back. 

When she found what she was looking for, she handed the album to Ruby and pointed to part of an old photograph strip of her, Kanan and Dia. In the first picture, Mari was in the middle with her arms around Dia and Kanan. Even at that age, Kanan had still been the tallest, so Mari had to stretch her arm to reach around her shoulders. Dia was wearing a demure smile as she leaned slightly against Mari. They looked innocent and happy. However, the second picture was Mari’s favourite. The three of them had each taken turns at the centre and Dia had forgotten that there was another photo left. She had initially turned to leave but Mari had tackled and pulled her back before the flash sounded. Dia looked completely stunned and slightly affronted, while Mari‘s attention was on Dia and not on the camera. Kanan had laughed so hard that she teared up. They brought back memories of simpler times. 

“Wow!! I’ve never seen any of these pictures.” 

She gently traced the worn edges of the photograph that had been haphazardly stuck to the page with tape. “This was during elementary school! Each of us has one photo from the strip, but because there were four pictures in total, I took the last one too. It’s pretty old and blurry now so maybe Dia threw hers away.” 

“Hahahaha!! I don’t think Onee-chan would want that last one behind Eli-san’s framed picture.” 

“Wait what? She keeps our pictures behind a framed photo of Ayase Eli?”

“Uhm...only the important ones?” Mari made a mental note to look for any framed photographs of Dia’s favourite idol, also known as her number one rival. 

“Don’t worry Mari-chan, she has an album too. She prints out those pictures from her camera and keeps them in her room.”

“Oh my! It seems like Dia has become more sneaky than I thought.” She looked at her phone and realised it was getting late. They had ended up talking for longer than she expected. Part of her wondered how many times Dia had been in the same position. “Do you feel like going to bed now, Ruby-chan? Princesses need their beauty sleep too!” 

“Okay, but it’s a little scary when you turn off the lights.”

“Think about it this way: if it’s dark and you close your eyes, then there’s no difference. It’s like a magic trick because when you open your eyes again, it’ll be morning and the darkness will be gone.”

“Ooh! That’s true...”

“Why don’t you try it out? It sort of makes time go faster too, and you’ll get to see your sister soon after you wake up. It’s something to look forward to.”

“Okay.” Mari smiled as she walked towards the light switch again. “Mari-chan? I don’t feel scared anymore. Thank you for staying up with me.” 

“You’re very welcome. Goodnight Ruby-chan.” Mari dimmed the lights slowly and turned to the younger girl before the room was brought back to darkness. 

Mari headed to her own bed as Ruby’s eyes drifted shut. With her hair down, Ruby thought she looked like a demure princess. It fit the room, or rather, the room was fitting for her. Her last thoughts were of hoping that Dia would have sweet dreams.

~~~

It was strange to suddenly be alone in her room. She had been sharing a room with Ruby for almost as long as she could remember. After all, she was two when her Mother brought another baby girl home in a blanket. The only times when their parents put a divider in their room were when Kanan and Mari slept over and they needed more space. Hence, the absence of her sister made her aware that her room was suddenly too quiet and empty. 

Being an older sister was difficult. Mari wouldn’t understand. She grew up as the only daughter and heiress to the Ohara family. Mari didn’t have to experience being woken up by her sister’s wailing in the middle of the night, and her mother trying to rock her back to sleep. Nor would Mari experience the fear of watching her sister fall and feeling like a failure because she wasn’t able to catch her.

Sometimes Ruby would wake up crying more than once in a single night. It became a habit for Dia to crawl to her sister’s bed and sit next to her while she slept. It gave her some sort of comfort to watch her even breaths as she slept. At least, if she woke up, Ruby would know she wasn’t alone. As a child herself, she didn’t really know how to handle a baby who was only a few years younger. Hence, all she could do was make sure she could run to get her mother if something serious happened.

When Ruby was born, Dia was surprised that such a tiny person could scream so loudly. One day, her mother had been so tired that when Ruby started crying and fussing, she hadn’t woken up. Dia had been reading her books next to her bed when Ruby suddenly stirred. She knew her Mother hadn’t slept the previous night, so she couldn’t disturb her. She, therefore, tried various means to calm her sister down herself. She tried to hold her hand like she saw some couples do on television, but she was shaken off when Ruby struggled. She waved one of her favourite rabbit plushies to distract her but Ruby kept crying. She even tried to feed her candy but it didn’t work. Finally, her mother woke up and brought Ruby to her room to quiet her down. Dia felt like she had failed. 

Since then, Dia became slightly fearful that any move or touch could set her off and then she wouldn’t stop crying. She didn’t even dare to carry her sister because she didn’t trust that she was strong enough. She wondered what her sister would grow up to be like and whether she would like kittens or puppies. She was still so tiny and new to the world. It was strange for Dia to imagine that this miniature human would soon become as big as her and her mother. Either way, she still wanted to work hard to become a good older sister who was capable of looking after Ruby and making her parents proud of both of them. 

When Ruby got a little older, she stopped waking up as often and her sleep cycles became more regular. However, Dia found herself habitually sitting next to her bed at night, in case she woke up and started crying. Most of the time, she would unintentionally fall asleep there and wake up with aching muscles and a spare blanket placed over her. She figured that those were the days when her father had the time to come in and check on them at night before going to bed.

Ruby was fortunate to have grown up spending a lot of time with both of her parents. Their father’s business had finally picked up when Ruby was an infant, which meant he could spend more time at home and less time doing smaller jobs which he could delegate to other workers. As a result, he doted a lot on Ruby. 

Dia remembered when Ruby was in pre-school and brought home a piece of paper which she said was for an art project. She had asked Dia for help because she didn’t know how to paint a garden. It ended up with Dia painting a bit of each portion to show her how it was done, but it became uneven so Dia painted the entire page for her. It wasn’t her best work, but two weeks later, her sister came home with an award for the painting. She felt an endless amount of pride and happiness for her sister, who instantly became the talk of the household. She denied any suspicion of whether she had any part to play in the painting. It was the first secret she had asked Ruby to keep. 

Her sister was no longer a naive infant. She was still naive, but Ruby was growing up fast, and it felt like she was growing further away from her. After constantly watching over her, it was an unfamiliar feeling to know that one day, she would not be needed anymore; and that day was approaching. 

On one hand, she should feel relieved that she would have less burdens and responsibilities. Yet, she had never considered her sister a burden to begin with. She just felt a sense of loneliness at the thought. She looked over at her desk, where there were several pictures of her and Ruby over the years. Those years had flown by and now graduation was approaching. 

It felt like this particular graduation wasn’t just about her leaving high school. She was graduating from Aqours, both the original and new Aqours. Her, Kanan and Mari. They were going their separate ways for real this time, and she didn’t know if they would reunite again. What scared her was the thought that even if they meet again, they would no longer be the same people. Now, more than ever, she didn't want their friendship and relationship respectively, to end. It was going to be hard enough for her and Kanan to keep in contact. She didn't know how she was going to keep up a long distance relationship. 

The first time, the three of them had ended things on a sour note, but they had been given a second chance. Not just as Aqours, but as best friends. Knowing that this was the final few months they had together was a bittersweet feeling. Everything was coming to an end. Her childhood, her dream, and part of her friendships too. As much as she knew they would all treasure the memories and friendships they built here, all of the girls would have to move on someday. For some people, the day would come sooner than others. 

By then, it had become an inconvenient truth that the school would no longer be around after this semester. All the students would be transferred and there was no other way around it. Mari, Dia and Kanan were essentially, the last batch of seniors who would be graduating from Uranohoshi Girls’ Highschool. They were leaving the place where they grew up, where they had cried, laughed, sang, danced, and worked hard to make it to where they were. It was like giving up a part of herself. 

She thought of her sister. Maybe Ruby might not rely on her as much anymore, but Dia needed her sister too. Ever since they joined Aqours, she has been watching Ruby mature and grow into a more confident and reliable person and she could not be more proud of her. At first, singing and dancing by her side felt like a last ditch effort to reclaim their shared passion but now it had become such a big part of their present that she could not imagine a day where she would no longer be practicing on the rooftop of their school. 

It was even more surreal to think that she would be moving away and living in a place where she would no longer play an active role in Ruby’s life. Was Ruby ready for that? Or rather, was she ready? 

Her phone beeped softly, interrupting her thoughts and she looked at the flashing screen. She was surprised that Mari was still awake, and sending her messages. This girl never learned. The message loaded and it was a picture of Ruby sleeping with a smile on her face. 

Goodnight Dia. We love you x

Looking at the simple text that accompanied the grainy picture, couldn’t help but smile. This was why she could never stay mad at her girlfriend. She looked over at the reading light she used to keep for her sister and slowly turned it off. She rolled over on her side and hoped Ruby had sweet dreams. 

~~~

Ruby woke up to Mari whispering on the phone. The light was streaming in through the curtains and she could smell an array of food awaiting her. She felt refreshed and relaxed. Talking with Mari had indeed taken away all the butterflies in her stomach and she had dreamt of feeding strawberries to rabbits. 

“Yes... by 10am today.... It’s the green tea container at the back of the shelf with a gold label... She loves matcha cookies so please feel free to use extra tea leaves. Thank you!!” Ruby sat up and saw a stack of papers on Mari’s table that wasn’t there previously. She blinked a few times before she realised that Mari had woken up early to finish all her paperwork before Dia arrived. 

“Wow, you really love onee-chan a lot.” Although Mari appeared to most people as very easy going, anyone who got to know her would know that she was committed to her duties as a Chairwoman and she worked very hard to ensure that things were running smoothly. Although Dia’s method of execution and planning was slightly different, they had complementary working styles. Hence, no one doubted their capability to run the school. 

“Oh! Good morning Ruby-chan! Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you. I had the chefs prepare you a continental breakfast since you usually have Japanese food.”

“Thank you very much! Don’t worry, onee-chan usually wakes me up around this time.” Ruby smiled and stretched her arms. “I’m very happy that the two of you are dating.”

“Hahaha! It’s good that someone like Ruby-chan would think so.” 

“Don’t worry Mari-chan, she may not say it very often but onee-chan loves you very much! She’s always talking about the things you do at school together.” 

Mari’s phone vibrated and she glanced down to look over the notifications. Ruby knew the moment her eyes lit up, that her sister must have arrived. When it came to anything that involved Dia, Mari seemed to become re-energised. She could only guess that it came from being in love with someone. 

“Ruby-chan, your sister’s here early. I’m going downstairs to greet her first while you eat and get ready, so take your time.” 

“Mari-chan, wait.” The older girl stopped and turned to her with a glowing smile. Ruby thought she really embodied her own catchphrase. “I want to thank you for inviting me to your slumber party and looking after me last night. Please take care of my sister in future. You’re always welcome at the Kurosawa house so do come by anytime.”

“Ruby-chan, you’re so sweet that I’m blushing! It sounds like you’re proposing for Dia!” The older girl giggled but her eyes shone with genuine happiness at her words. Ruby couldn't help but grin back as she started eating. Mari was not completely wrong. “I’ll definitely take you up on your offer though! I look forward to coming to play with you more often.” 

As Ruby walked towards the lobby a while later, she spotted Mari hugging Dia and her sister grudgingly returning the affection. It seemed like they had already worked things out. They were still deep in conversation when she arrived and it was exactly like the picture she had seen. Mari’s attention was fully on Dia and Dia was letting herself get pulled in by her. Despite the constant chiding and complaints, she could tell that her older sister was just as crazy for the blonde as Mari was for her. It delighted her to know that after spending her life watching over her, her sister was going to be well taken care of. 

Until then, Ruby would enjoy the time she had to look after her sister and watch her grow and carve her own way. She smiled and waited behind the pillar. She would count to 100 before making her presence known to the couple. 

“Diaaaa, what’s this I hear about an album with pictures of us in the back of your drawer?” 

“I-I have no idea what you’re talking about.” 

“Ruby-chan told me about your Elichika photo too. I’m flattered that you consider me as important as your beloved Eli.” 

“What is even happening right now? RUBY!!! Where is she? Did you coerce her for information?”

Oops. She cringed. Make that 60 seconds. Listening as the banter continued in a different direction, a careful diversion by Mari, Ruby giggled. From the looks of things, she had no doubt that they were going to last as a couple after graduation. 

She couldn’t wait to have another onee-chan.


End file.
